Henry VI, Part III · Characters
Character guide
Key figures in Henry VI, Part III by William Shakespeare.
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King Henry VI
major
Also known as Henry, Harry, King Henry
Henry VI sits uneasily on a throne his grandfather won at Agincourt, a man of conscience surrounded by lords who measure him only in weakness. His mildness — patience he urges on others even as York plants himself in the chair of state — is both his virtue and his political undoing, and it throws the realm into the hands of Margaret and Warwick alike. His famous image of himself as a feather blown by whichever gust is greater captures the tragedy at the play's center: a king whose crown, he says, is 'content,' and who matters because his helplessness is what everyone else is fighting over.
Queen Margaret
major
Also known as Margaret, poor Margaret, Queen Margaret
Margaret is the true engine of the Lancastrian cause, a queen who argues, schemes, and shames while her husband prays. Before King Lewis she dismantles Warwick's embassy piece by piece, insisting that a 'tyrant' who lets Henry live cannot be a lawful king — and that her son Edward, not York's line, is the rightful heir. Her refusal to accept defeat, and her willingness to wield words as weapons, make her the most dangerous obstacle the Yorkists face in the play's early and middle acts.
King Edward IV
major
Also known as Edward, King Edward, Edward Plantagenet
Edward Plantagenet is the eldest son of York, crowned on the strength of Warwick's armies and his brothers' swords. Yet in the very scene of his triumph he pauses over Lady Grey's petition, and his brothers exchange knowing asides about 'the game' he plays — a hint that this king's appetites may undo what his ambition won. He matters because the Yorkist victory is only as stable as its king, and Edward's susceptibility to desire sets the stage for the betrayals that follow.
Richard, Duke of Gloucester
major
Also known as Richard, Gloucester, Dicky, Richard Duke of Gloucester
Richard is the Yorkist brother whose wit cuts as deep as his sword, the one York praises above all his sons for what he has 'deserved.' He enters the parliament house armed, tosses Somerset's severed head at his father's feet, and declares he hopes to 'shake King Henry's head' — a line that lands as a jest and a threat at once. His sardonic asides during Edward's courtship of Lady Grey show a mind already watching, calculating, and enjoying the weaknesses of those around him.
Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick
major
Also known as Warwick, Lord Warwick, sweet Warwick, great Warwick
Warwick is the great power-broker of the realm, the peer whose backing makes and unmakes kings. In the parliament house he pledges his life to York's claim, boasting that no man dares 'stir a wing' when Warwick shakes his bells — and later he crosses to France to negotiate a royal marriage as if he, not Edward, controlled England's future. His pride in his own indispensability is the hinge on which the play's alliances turn, and his eventual rupture with the king he made drives the middle acts.
George, Duke of Clarence
supporting
Also known as Clarence, George, gentle Clarence, sweet Clarence
Clarence stands between two stronger brothers — Edward the crowned king and Richard the scheming wit — and his position as the middle Plantagenet makes him both valuable and vulnerable. He trades knowing asides with Richard during Edward's flirtation with Lady Grey, showing he sees the game clearly even if he lacks the will to master it. His wavering allegiance, caught between family and self-interest, makes him a barometer of how fragile the Yorkist settlement really is.
Lord Hastings
supporting
Also known as Hastings, the Lord Hastings, my Lord Hastings
Hastings belongs to the network of Yorkist peers who help plant Edward IV on the throne and then must navigate the treacherous aftermath. His position depends on the king's favor, but Edward's impulsive marriage to Lady Grey and Warwick's furious defection make loyalty a dangerous gamble. Hastings matters because he represents the fragile coalition of nobles whose wavering support will determine whether York or Lancaster holds the crown.
Prince Edward of Westminster
supporting
Also known as Prince Edward, Edward, Ned, sweet Ned
Prince Edward stands at the center of the Lancastrian claim, a boy whose birthright his mother defends with more ferocity than his father ever musters. When Henry disinherits him in favor of York, the prince's wounded protest exposes the family fracture beneath the dynastic war. His presence forces every negotiation to reckon with the future: whoever holds England must eventually answer to Henry's son.
Lord Clifford
supporting
Also known as Clifford, valiant Clifford, stern Lord Clifford, boisterous Clifford
Clifford enters the play already grieving, his father killed at St Albans, and he vows never to kneel to the man responsible. When Henry VI agrees to disinherit his own son, Clifford's fury at the king's weakness rivals his hatred of York, and he storms out with Northumberland and Westmoreland. His refusal to accept compromise makes him the engine of the war's bloodiest escalations.
Lady Elizabeth Grey
supporting
Also known as Lady Grey, the Lady Grey, Elizabeth
Lady Grey comes to court seeking only the restoration of her dead husband's confiscated estates, but Edward's interest in her quickly becomes something far more consequential. Her insistence on an immediate answer, and her refusal to be a king's mistress, pushes Edward into a marriage that humiliates Warwick and shatters the French alliance. She is the quiet hinge on which the play's political catastrophe turns.
King Lewis XI
supporting
Also known as Lewis, King Lewis, noble Lewis
King Lewis sits at the fulcrum of European diplomacy, weighing Warwick's embassy for an English alliance against Margaret's warnings that Edward is a usurper. When news arrives that Edward has married Lady Grey instead of Lewis's sister Bona, the French king's injured pride turns him decisively toward Lancaster. His soldiers and ships will carry Warwick and Margaret back to England, making him the foreign power that reopens the civil war.
Lady Bona
minor
Also known as Bona, the Lady Bona
Sister of the French queen, briefly betrothed to Edward IV.
Edmund, Earl of Rutland
minor
Also known as Rutland, sweet young Rutland, young Rutland
Young Yorkist prince murdered by Clifford after the Battle of Wakefield.
John Neville, Marquess of Montague
supporting
Also known as Montague, Marquess Montague, brother Montague
Montague fights beside Warwick and the York brothers from the first scene, proudly displaying the blood of Lancastrian lords he has killed. As Warwick's brother, he is bound to the man who made Edward king, yet the king's ingratitude toward Warwick creates a loyalty crisis Montague cannot avoid. His eventual choice between blood and crown will help decide which house commands the north.
Henry Holland, Duke of Exeter
minor
Also known as Exeter, Warwick Exeter
Lancastrian nobleman loyal to Henry VI.
Edmund Beaufort, Duke of Somerset
supporting
Also known as Somerset, my Lord of Somerset, gentle Somerset
Somerset belongs to the Lancastrian faction that surrounds the pious King Henry, and his death at York's hands is announced before the play's first scene has finished. His head, thrown down by Richard of Gloucester, becomes a grisly trophy that hardens the resolve of both houses and turns a dynastic quarrel into a feud of blood. For the early arc, Somerset is less a man than a warning: the price of loyalty to a king too gentle to protect his own.
Sir John Montgomery
minor
Also known as Montgomery, Sir John Montgomery, good Montgomery, brave Montgomery
Yorkist knight who helps Edward IV reclaim the throne.
John de Vere, Earl of Oxford
minor
Also known as Oxford, sweet Oxford
Lancastrian nobleman who fights for Henry VI.
Earl of Northumberland
minor
Also known as Northumberland, Earl of Northumberland
Lancastrian nobleman who eventually abandons Henry VI.
Anthony Woodville, Earl Rivers
minor
Also known as Rivers, brother Rivers
Brother of Queen Elizabeth and loyal Yorkist lord.
Sir John Mortimer
minor
Also known as John, Sir John, Mortimer
Yorkist supporter and uncle to Edward IV.
Sir Hugh Mortimer
minor
Also known as Sir Hugh Mortimer
Yorkist supporter and uncle to Edward IV.
Sir William Stanley
minor
Also known as Sir William Stanley
Yorkist knight who aids Edward IV's restoration.
Sir John Somerville
minor
Also known as Somerville, Sir John Somerville
Yorkist messenger and supporter.
Sir Richard Grey
minor
Also known as Sir Richard Grey, Richard
Son of Queen Elizabeth, executed by Richard of Gloucester.
Lord Stafford
minor
Also known as Lord Stafford, Edward Lord Stafford
Yorkist nobleman who fights for Edward IV.
Earl of Pembroke
minor
Also known as Pembroke
Yorkist supporter who raises forces for Edward IV.
Duke of Norfolk
minor
Also known as Norfolk, gentle Norfolk
Yorkist nobleman who fights at the Battle of Barnet.
First Watchman
minor
Also known as First Watchman, Watchman
Guard at the gates of York who reports to Edward IV.
Third Watchman
minor
Also known as Third Watchman, Watchman
Guard who helps capture King Henry VI.
Huntsman
minor
Also known as Huntsman, King Edward Huntsman
Forester who helps Edward IV escape after a battle.
Post
minor
Also known as Post
Messenger who brings news to the French court.
Messenger
minor
Also known as Messenger
Courier delivering battle reports to Warwick.
